LORETTO, Pa. (Sept. 3, 2013) – Saint Francis University women's basketball head coach Joe Haigh announced the hiring of Danielle Hemerka as an assistant coach.

Hemerka has spent the past two seasons as a women's basketball assistant coach at American University in Washington, D.C. In April, Hemerka was also named the recruiting coordinator for the Eagles.

"I'm thrilled that we were able to add Danielle to our staff at Saint Francis. She was one of the best players ever at Davidson University and a team captain there," Haigh said. "She worked in one of the best programs in the country at Maryland and then did a great job working in her stint at American University as well."

"Danielle will make a great positive impact on our program at Saint Francis," Haigh continued. "She has a great demeanor with the student-athlete, a great work ethic, and is the type of high character person we want in our coaching staff at Saint Francis."

Prior to arriving at American, Hemerka worked for the three years on head coach Brenda Frese's staff at Maryland as the assistant to the recruiting coordinator and staff administrative assistant. Her responsibilities included assisting with the day-to-day operations of the program's recruiting and fundraising efforts, as well as supervising the managers and scout team. She also served as assistant director of Maryland women's basketball's summer camp.

"I'm excited for the opportunity to be a part of Coach Haigh's staff," Hemerka said. "The tradition here at Saint Francis University is one of the best, and I can't wait to help continue bringing in successful student-athletes to our program and community."

Prior to arriving at Maryland, Hemerka graduated from Davidson in 2008, where she made 119 overall appearances and started 108 games in her remarkable four-year career. She was the team captain in her senior season, and graduated as the only student-athlete in program history to record 1,000 points, 700 rebounds, 200 assists, and 150 steals in her career. Hemerka helped lead the Wildcats to a 77-43 overall record in her four years, including a 23-9 campaign in the 2006-07 season, which they earned the program's first-ever postseason bid.

Hemerka earned a Bachelor's Degree from Davidson in Psychology in 2008.